Photo by Toni L. Bailey/The Olympian OLYMPIA -- Graydon Manning\'s high school running career has been a mix of hurrahs and injuries. The Capital senior endured a broken hip two years ago, costing him his sophomore season. Last spring, an enflamed Achilles tendon limited his training going into track, yet he still reached state. On Saturday, a healthy Manning stuck to the heels of speedy Charlie Williams of Gig Harbor, only to drop off in the closing lap to place second at the Capital Invitational, a 30-school cross country meet that drew 1,008 runners. \"Charlie is the man,\" Manning said. \"I knew who he was. My strategy was to stay with him and go hard on the downhills.\" But Williams, who placed third at state in the 1,600 meters in the spring, matched Manning\'s surge and won the senior boys race in 11:41 for the 2.23-mile course. Manning finished in 11:59, 22 seconds faster than his time last year and the meet\'s 22nd-fastest time. \"I thought Charlie would sit on me and make me set the pace,\" said Manning, who kept a 5:22 mile pace. \"Then I thought he\'d try to outkick me. But he took the lead from the start.\"
TACOMA -- Olympia\'s Sara Klein was nearly flawless in the high jump Friday, making her first four jumps to win the girls 4A West Central District high jump championship. The Olympian - Click Here But her steps were off in the 110-meter hurdles and she barely avoided disqualification for stepping into another lane. Klein, hoping to qualify for state in four individual events, had the right steps in the long jump to place third with a leap of 17 feet and 51/2 inches, highlighting the first day of the two-day district meet that concludes today at Mount Tahoma High School.
SHELTON -- On a cold, rainy and blustery afternoon, Olympia track and field coach Cris Violette wasn\'t anticipating any record-breaking performances.
But he was hoping for a team victory.
With Sara Klein\'s two firsts, a second and a third, the Olympia girls easily won the Shelton Invitational for the second straight year, finishing with 96 points. Wilson, led by Chanel James\' three firsts, finished a distant second with 42 points.
\"It wasn\'t a great day for great times, but the kids competed great,\" Violette said.
\"Everyone came through despite the bad weather.\"
Olympia showed its grit and depth by winning a whopping 18 medals, with Jill Lahmann placing third in the 100, Cheri Watson third in the 800, and Anna Blue fourth in the 3,200 to lead the way. The Bears relays dominated, taking second in the 400, third in the distance medley and first in the 1600.